Looking for a mid-winter dose of Tulum's chic, laidback charm stateside? Cue new NoHo Italian eatery Circolo. Modeled after ten-year-old Mexican hotspot and jetset favorite, Posada Margherita, Circolo is the love child of four friends who met at the aforementioned hotel/restaurant. Alessandro Carozzino, Federico Paterniti, Francesco Barosi and Andrea De Leonardis established Circolo in the DNA of its inspiration, with a modern menu featuring the classic Italian approach to food: simple, healthy and homemade — care of head chef Fabio Scovaventi. De Leonardis, managing partner and former employee at Posada Margherita, explains the origins of the idea to bring the vacation vibe to Manhattan. "We'd often sit around after dinner with guests from New York, and they'd always tell us they wished they could eat the same way in New York, and we'd dream about opening a restaurant in such an incredible place. And then at some point we'd dreamed about it for so long that it started to feel possible."

Circoloʼs design, with interior elements that are either handmade or found in secondhand shops and refinished, is the result of a collaborative effort between the restaurant's founders and Ambra Medda, founding director of Design Miami, Suzanne Demisch of Demisch Danant Design Gallery and Shawn Brydges of Brydges Mackinney. The inspiration was "a touch of the old fashion and a touch of '50s Italian modernism," explains De Leonardis. If everything about Circolo sounds like it is born out of some chic community effort, you won't be surprised to hear that "circolo" is an Italian word meaning club and that in traditional Italian society, a circolo is a local spot to meet friends, chat and imbibe. The results of Circolo's imaginative partnerships are what De Leonardis calls "a fusion of simplicity in a family atmosphere, very friendly and relaxed," — sort of like a mini vacation in itself.